HIS library invites community members to inspire keiki

Published March 20, 2014 - 4:54pm

In an effort to give students a peek into their potential futures, the Hilo Intermediate School library is hosting community members who come in and share who they are, what they do, how they learned what they needed in order to succeed and talk about what they’re reading.

All this is to help foster an understanding reading is a lifelong involvement, as opposed to getting through a homework assignment, and the amazing amount of things out there — all available to read.

Most students this age have no idea about what they’d like to spend their time doing and this provides a “Mini-Career Day” to inspire them, said program coordinators Fran McCully and Angie Toma.

Thus far, the students heard from a broad spectrum of business owners and public officers, starting with Mayor Billy Kenoi, who was able to relate his experiences as a restless student who still has an appreciation for the written word.

Included have been a florist, a retired librarian who provided a hands-on lesson on Chinese New Year, the manager of a local brewery, an aircraft/auto mechanic and a state senator’s East Hawaii campaign manager, among others.

Their visits are hosted in the school library and open to families of the students. They are from about 12:25-12:50 p.m. during the students’ lunch break on Tuesdays and Fridays. Please check in at the office before heading to the library.

Here are some upcoming programs:

• Tuesday — Officer Brian Tina, Hilo Intermediate’s School Resource Officer, will talk about how he got into law enforcement, anti-bullying tactics and what he does while he’s on duty on campus, along with what he’s reading.

• Friday, March 28 — Shawn Pila, videographer for Ena Media Hawaii, and Robert Patterson, semi-pro surfer, will share how they got into their fields, and their experiences.

• Tuesday, April 1 — Alan Ohara, multimedia designer, will provide info about his schooling and the changing world of graphics technology.

• Friday, April 4 — Kaipo Ah Chong, florist and owner of Pua Lane, will talk about how he got into floral design and his new business model.

• Tuesday, April 8 — Leslie Lang, writer, blogger and biographer, will give insights into her creative process, where she’s been and what she’s working on.

• Tuesday, April 15 — Barbara Hastings, co-owner of Hastings &Pleadwell, a communications company, will explain the importance of public relations and her past experiences in paving the way for businesses to succeed.

• Tuesday, April 22 — Roxanne Costa, a Salvation Army officer, will share some of her experiences working with disadvantaged youths and how she got to her position.

• Friday, April 25 — Susi Hamilton, co-owner of Plant It Hawaii, will share how she got into this particular field of agriculture and the state of farming on our island.

• Tuesday, April 29 — Alan Shiraishi, assistant vice president and branch manager of Bank of Hawaii, will discuss banking and financial institutions and how he achieved his position.

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